Anderson's first Test victim Mark Vermeulen is thrilled for him!

Mark Vermeulen

England fast bowler James Anderson's 600-wicket journey began 17 years ago when he bowled Zimbabwean opener Mark Vermeulen at Lord's on the second day (May 23, 2003) of the first Test.

"Yes, I have been following Anderson's career with interest," the former right handed said from South Africa, where he has migrated to and is involved with school-level coaching.

"Anderson has done very well to keep fit to play for this long and I hope that he can get 20 more Test wickets so that he can jump ahead of Anil Kumble and go to No. 3 in the all-time wicket-takers," Vermeulen said. Interestingly, Anderson, the Lancashire swing bowler, had to spend nearly 21 hours between his 599 and 600th wickets. Had there been no play on the final day, he would have had to wait longer. India's Umesh Yadav finished the Nagpur Test v Sri Lanka on November 27, 2017 on 99 wickets, and had to wait until the Bangalore Test against Afghanistan on June 14, 2018 to get his 100th scalp.

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